Is Lake Superior the largest freshwater lake in the world?

Lake Superior is the world's largest freshwater lake by area (31,700 mi2 /82,100 km2). It is also the coldest and deepest of the Great Lakes, with a maximum depth of 406 meters (1,332 feet). By most measures, it is the healthiest of all the Great Lakes.



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Located in Russia in the southern region of Siberia, Lake Baikal is the world's largest freshwater lake by both volume (22995 km3) and depth (1741m).

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World's Largest Lake (by surface area): So, Lake Michigan-Huron could be considered the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface area. It has a total surface area of 45,410 square miles (117,611 square kilometers), which is significantly larger than Lake Superior.

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Lake Victoria, Africa Lake Victoria is the largest lake in Africa and the second largest freshwater lake in the world, after Lake Superior in North America. It is located in East Africa and shares its shores between three countries: Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.

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Lake Baikal, in Siberia, holds the distinction of being both the deepest lake in the world and the largest freshwater lake, holding more than 20% of the unfrozen fresh water on the surface of Earth. It is also the oldest freshwater lake in the world, with an estimated age of 20 million to 25 million years.

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5. Lake Superior has its origins in the North American Mid-Continent Rift of 1.1 to 1.2 billion years ago, which produced a huge plume of hot mantle where the present lake sits. The crust tore apart, leaving an arc-shaped scar stretching form Kansas through Minnesota, then down to Michigan.

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Lake Superior's beaches are open and safe for swimming over 90% of the time, and the water is extremely clear, with an average underwater visibility of 8.3 m (27 ft).

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So, in a line-up of the usual lake suspects, Lake Superior is the biggest by surface area and Lake Baikal is the largest by volume. But here's where things get interesting. After you've decided what measurements to use to determine “biggest,” you then have to ask yourself an even harder question – what is a lake?

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Blue Lake, New Zealand Blue Lake has underwater visibility up to 70 to 80 meters or 230 to 260 feet down, which is insane! Apart from being the world's clearest lake, it's also the clearest body of natural freshwater. The water in Blue Lake is comparable to distilled water based on laboratory measurements.

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Situated in south-east Siberia, the 3.15-million-ha Lake Baikal is the oldest (25 million years) and deepest (1,700 m) lake in the world. It contains 20% of the world's total unfrozen freshwater reserve.

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Lake Bernard is the largest freshwater lake in the world without an island.

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Lake Ladoga, Russian Ladozhskoye Ozero or Ladozhskoe Ozero, largest lake in Europe, located in northwestern Russia about 25 miles (40 km) east of St. Petersburg.

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